honorable mention
Wendel Wirth united states
title
No Vacancy
My relentless obsession of both photography and minimalism led me to add the color block. I became deeply curious about the relationship between photography and minimalism; how we see and how we experience both an image and an art form. The color blocks, each playing a unique role amongst its black and white counterpart, inject character & complexity to the work asking the viewer to experience each image differently while ultimately commenting on photography as an art form.
No Vacancy consists of fifteen black & white photographs layered, in photoshop, with a block of color. Each image was taken with a medium format Leica camera. The archival pigment prints are available in three sizes; approximately 20x30, 30x45 and 47x70 inches.
Wendel received her Masters of Fine Art from the Academy of Art University in San Francisco, graduating Magna Cum Laude and her Bachelor of Fine Art from Denison University.
For 18 years, prior to pursuing her MFA, Wendel worked as a commercial photographer, art director and product designer for ‘a tail we could wag’. She has studied photography at Parson’s School of Design, Maine Photographic Workshops (now Maine Media) and with the Friends of Photography. She has had the fortune of studying under Ruth Bernhard, Ralph Gibson and Hosoe Eikoh.
Originally from New York City and Chicago, she lives in the mountains of Ketchum (better known as Sun Valley), Idaho with her husband, daughter and two well loved dogs.
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entry description
No vacancy explores the space between minimalism and photography, layering black-and-white images with a block of color, essentially hiding a piece of the photograph. Storied flashes of small-town America that appear to be suspended in time, work to function like a movie still offering just enough visual narrative to compel the viewer to seek more.My relentless obsession of both photography and minimalism led me to add the color block. I became deeply curious about the relationship between photography and minimalism; how we see and how we experience both an image and an art form. The color blocks, each playing a unique role amongst its black and white counterpart, inject character & complexity to the work asking the viewer to experience each image differently while ultimately commenting on photography as an art form.
No Vacancy consists of fifteen black & white photographs layered, in photoshop, with a block of color. Each image was taken with a medium format Leica camera. The archival pigment prints are available in three sizes; approximately 20x30, 30x45 and 47x70 inches.
about the photographer
Wendel Wirth's most recent body of work, No Vacancy, was shortlisted for the 2017 Felix Schoeller Photo Award. In 2015, she was awarded a Fellowship from the Idaho Commission on the Arts. In November of 2013, Wendel received a Juror’s Merit Award at the Boise Art Museum Triennial exhibit. She is represented by Gilman Contemporary in Ketchum, Idaho and Dimmitt Contemporary Art in Houston.Wendel received her Masters of Fine Art from the Academy of Art University in San Francisco, graduating Magna Cum Laude and her Bachelor of Fine Art from Denison University.
For 18 years, prior to pursuing her MFA, Wendel worked as a commercial photographer, art director and product designer for ‘a tail we could wag’. She has studied photography at Parson’s School of Design, Maine Photographic Workshops (now Maine Media) and with the Friends of Photography. She has had the fortune of studying under Ruth Bernhard, Ralph Gibson and Hosoe Eikoh.
Originally from New York City and Chicago, she lives in the mountains of Ketchum (better known as Sun Valley), Idaho with her husband, daughter and two well loved dogs.
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